The kitchen is where we cook, eat, laugh, play, and it is also the most expensive room in the house when it comes to renovations. How expensive? Well, according to HomeAdvisor, on average, it costs $20,556 to completely renovate a kitchen, with smaller kitchens ranging anywhere from $10,000 to $15,000. If you’re going to spend so much money on one room, be sure to do it right the first time by avoiding any unnecessary costs by planning and conducting plenty of research on what you want and who you will get to do the job for you. Before you plan your renovation, you will need to have a set budget, a rough layout of how you want your new kitchen to look and good communication with your contractor. Ideally, you should plan your kitchen renovation alongside your contractor. Here’s a simple scheduling guide to help make the long process a bit easier. Remember each project varies, so feel free to adjust as you and your contractor see fit.
1 Demolition
This is typically the fastest and often most fun part of a kitchen renovation. There are several different approaches to the demolition portion of a renovation. Some contractors like to demolish piece by piece, and others like to demolish all at once. Talk to your contractor about which method would be best for your kitchen renovation.
Remember, there will be dust… lots and lots of dust. The dust will most likely linger for weeks, but it will eventually all settle. We recommend placing plastic covering with tape along the edges between your kitchen and any adjacent rooms to help reduce the amount of dust in other rooms.
2 Foundation: Framing, plumbing, electrical, etc.
This part of the renovation involves everything that lies behind the scenes, or quite literally behind the walls. Essentially this is the stage that lays out the foundation and framework for your new kitchen. We recommend you schedule this part of the renovation early on so you can identify big problems such as plumbing or electrical issues that may extend beyond the kitchen. The last thing you want is to finish your kitchen and have your pipes burst or outlets short circuit.
3 Cabinets
Cabinets are the face of your kitchen. If you are trying to save money, we recommend keeping your old cabinets and just having them resurfaced or reworked. However, if your budget allows, you can order custom cabinets to match the style and look of your new kitchen. It is typically recommended not to remove the old cabinets until the new ones have arrived. Keep in mind that custom cabinets can take several weeks to arrive.
4 Countertops and flooring
These two go hand in hand. It’s like matching your belt with your shoes. You want to make sure that all material is ordered to arrive by the time your contractor is ready to install the countertops and flooring. Remember that you will most likely need to have a grout color picked out as well if you are going with tile. If you are going with concrete, granite, marble or silestone for your countertops, be sure to allow for fabrication time.
Tip: We recommend always ordering a bit more material than necessary. It is better to have extra tile left over for an emergency than to not have enough and find that your specific tile has been discontinued.
5 Touch-ups: fixtures, appliances, etc.
Your kitchen should be looking a lot more put together by now. This stage encompasses all the tidying up that is necessary to complete your kitchen. Any holes should be patched up, all fixture put into place, all appliances installed, etc.
6 Paint
Some people like to have two paint stages: one after the cabinets have been installed and one after the touch-ups. We recommend having one final paint stage at the end of your renovation to avoid having the painters come in twice. Make sure your contractor or painter covers up all counters and flooring before painting.
Remember, it is rare that everything goes perfectly as planned. Any obstacles that come along are nothing that you and your contractor cannot push through and overcome. Just keep the end goal in mind and ceaselessly work toward it. Much like in life, we must be agile and learn to roll with the broken kitchen tiles.